[RE-wrenches] Metering

Tue Sep 30 09:20:34 PDT 2014

Hello esteemed wrenches,

I want to respond to Bill's questions about monitoring Enphase systems.
The email alerts are the primary method for alerting homeowners to issues
with their site, but we have also developed tools for managing fleets of
systems within Enlighten.  As an installer, when you first log into
Enlighten Manager you will be brought to your Installer Dashboard page.
The Installer Dashboard can be configured with various widgets, including a
Maintenance Alerts widget which will provide you with a  list of systems
that are experiencing Production Issues or other reporting issues.  This
prevent you from having to select each system individually.  Also, the
Systems page can be used to view daily, weekly, monthly, or lifetime energy
production of every system you've installed.

The email alerts can be configured to alert you and/or the homeowner to
production issues, but can also be configured to send alerts based upon
monthly production thresholds that you set.  If a system produces less than
the estimated production, an email will be sent to the homeowner and/or the
installer.  This is nice because the alerts occurs without the homeowner
monitoring their electric bill and checking for blinking lights.

I also want to echo some of the points that August made, particularly with
regard to installing a dedicated receptacle for the monitor. My experience,
like August's,  is that locating the Envoy on a dedicated receptacle that
is wired off the same load center/ panel board as the microinverters will
lead to reliable communications.

On Tue, Sep 30, 2014 at 7:53 AM, August Goers <august at luminalt.com> wrote:

> Hi Bill,
>
>
>
> You have a good point about the burden of monitoring and how to keep up
> with it. We have hundreds of monitored sites, some Enphase and some others,
> and it is impossible to really check them thoroughly. However, most
> monitoring sites have some basic warning capabilities which I find useful.
> For example, Enphase will send us and the client an email if their system
> stops producing power or if there is another type of inverter error. It
> won’t catch minor issues but it does catch the major issues. SunPower has a
> dashboard we log into each morning to catch any major problems – especially
> “inverter down” errors. I’m hoping SunPower will implement an email warning
> system as well.
>
>
>
> The main problem I see with installing microinverters without the
> proprietary monitoring device (Envoy for Enphase, CDD for ABB, etc) is that
> there is no easy way for the client to know if all their micros are working
> – there is no green light or red light to check.
>
>
>
> Here in the Bay Area we’re finding more and more competitors selling
> leases and production guarantees. I imagine that the larger of these
> companies have some sort of automated monitoring system to check production
> but I don’t know for certain. With our SunPower leases, SunPower sends us a
> monthly email with production updates versus the simulated estimate based
> on our shade and site conditions. This is a really quick way to see how our
> fleet is doing.
>
>
>
> To Ray Walters’ point about powerline communication with Enphase, we’ve
> had very reliable monitoring with our Envoys once we started installing a
> dedicated receptacle for the Envoy at the same load center where we
> installed our microinverter breakers. I can’t think of a single instance
> where communication hasn’t been reliable.
>
>
>
> We also don’t sell monitoring to clients who show little interest in it.
> They can check their string inverter on a regular basis or keep their eyes
> on their bills and it does make everyone’s life a little easier.
>
>
>
> Anyway, there is no doubt that monitoring adds a lot of overhead to our
> business and we are trying to figure out better ways to setup expectations
> with clients. As I’ve posted in the past, we end up dealing with a lot of
> IT issues for homeowners.
>
>
>
> Best,
>
>
>
> August
>
>
>
> Luminalt
>
>
>
> *From:* RE-wrenches [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] *On
> Behalf Of *frenergy
> *Sent:* Monday, September 29, 2014 7:02 PM
>
> *To:* RE-wrenches
> *Subject:* Re: [RE-wrenches] Metering
>
>
>
> All,
>
>
>
>         Great points and a little education of others' feelings about,
> essentially how granular we need to be in monitoring.
>
>
>
>         I'm curious who is monitoring the Enphase systems in the solar
> world, seriously.  I know 95% of my customers are more concerned about
> catching the bus or what's for dinner than if PV #8 has bird crap on it.
> Do the folks at Enphase, through Enlighten have some software that spots
> issues?  I know I, as an installer don't have time for it.  My experience
> is the customer notices their power bill was higher last month, they take a
> look at the inverter and no green light...CALL BILL.
>
>
>
>         Thanks folks for the resources for meters, din rail too.
>
>
>
> Bill
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
>
> *From:* Glenn Burt <glenn.burt at glbcc.com>
>
> *To:* 'RE-wrenches' <re-wrenches at lists.re-wrenches.org>
>
> *Sent:* Monday, September 29, 2014 5:17 PM
>
> *Subject:* Re: [RE-wrenches] Metering
>
>
>
> I would not classify what we are doing in PV as SCADA.
>
>
>
> It is purely data acquisition at this point, and more commonly referred to
> as DAS or a Data Acquisition System.
>
> SCADA by its definition entails a two way path of both receiving data and
> being able to send control signals, usually from a big picture program,
> monitoring dozens of data points.
>
> Let’s not try to make the simple into a more complex thing than it is.
>
>
>
> -Glenn
>
>
>
> *From:* RE-wrenches [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org
> <re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org>] *On Behalf Of *Ray Walters
> *Sent:* Monday, September 29, 2014 2:31 PM
> *To:* RE-wrenches
> *Subject:* Re: [RE-wrenches] Metering
>
>
>
> The 2nd problem with the Envoy besides cost is that it isn't always
> reliable.    Communication through power lines is not a new or fresh idea,
> and has Always been problematic.  Once you install something you are
> expected to make it work, and that can be a nightmare on say an 8 module
> system that keeps losing communication to one or two modules.  I've had
> this exact case, and confirmed multiple times that each micro was working,
> but the Envoy had other ideas.
> This rush to mega data acquisition makes sense for larger PPA systems, but
> can just add tons of call backs and the resulting financial losses and
> frustrations for small systems.
> I've spent as much time messing with SCADA, as I have with the entire
> install itself; now that's ridiculous.  This isn't new either:  I had
> SCADA systems back in the 90s, that had great promise, but ultimately were
> extremely hard to implement, and the customer never used after anyway......
> The question is:
> What does the customer really need to operate the system vs. "bells and
> whistles".....
>
> R.Ray Walters
>
> CTO, Solarray, Inc
>
> Nabcep Certified PV Installer,
>
> Licensed Master Electrician
>
> Solar Design Engineer
>
> 303 505-8760
>
> On 9/29/2014 12:12 PM, August Goers wrote:
>
> Hi Bill,
>
>
>
> One of the largest benefits of the microinverter system, in my opinion, is
> the ability to monitor each module individually. It might seem like ~$500
> is a lot for the Envoy but I think it is well worth it when you think about
> the 25 year warranty period and included ongoing monitoring. We’ve had
> enough Enphase failures that I would personally really want to be able to
> keep my eye on each micro individually.
>
>
>
> Just a thought, August
>
>
>
> *From:* RE-wrenches [mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] *On
> Behalf Of *frenergy
> *Sent:* Sunday, September 28, 2014 2:26 PM
> *To:* RE-wrenches
> *Subject:* [RE-wrenches] Metering
>
>
>
> CA wrenches,
>
>
>
>         I'm trying to (for the sake of my monetarily impaired customers)
> figure out a less expensive way to meter/monitor small enphase systems.
> One of my local utilities will allow me to just use a remanufactured
> utility-grade meter (ala AEE) These meters are inexpensive, robust and
> accurate but only display total production.
>
>
>
>         The Envoy retails for over $5 bills.  Most of my customers are not
> interested in checking their PV system on the internet, well not after a
> couple weeks.  I can't seem to find any requirement from PG&E other than in
> Section 5.1 of the guidebook: " All systems receiving an EPBB incentive
> must install a production meter accurate to +- 5% of actual system
> output...."       which is pretty vague.  plus the is no CSI incentive
> anymore.
>
>
>
>         Anybody have a suggestion that is different from the remanu
> utility meter?....and possibly gives current wattage output, and is
> "approved" by PG&E interconnection?
>
>
>
> TIA
>
>
>
> Bill
>
>
>
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-- 

Cordially,

*Nick Soleil*

*Field Applications Engineer*

*Enphase Energy*

Mobile: (707) 321-2937

*The Enphase System** | *Empowering You in 2014
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<nsoleil at enphaseenergy.com>

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